Neko
by LBx
Summary: When something is lost, how far would you go to replace it, and what consequences would there be? shounen ai Chobits AU


Thanks to Enkeli for helping me get this fic to where it is now. Couldn't have done it without you. Also, thanks to Akai for giving me confidence in this story, and Ishshi for the nice comments ^^ You three are the best! And Akai and Ishshi, I hope you like the final version as much as you liked draft one!  
  
-----------------------------------------  
  
"No one can be a replacement for someone else. Especially if it's someone you're very close to."  
  
~ Yuzuki, Chobits, Volume 6 ~  
  
-----------------------------------------  
  
None of us will ever be the same as we were back when we competed in the world championships, too much has happened to us. But over time, I gradually lost contact with all my old friends: Tyson, Max and Kenny. When Rei was still alive, we use to always get together and hold team reunions, but that all ended when he died. It was too painful for all of us, and I think the others felt guilty about having fun when one of their teammates couldn't be with them anymore. I felt guilty too; for never giving Rei the attention he deserved when he was alive. Out of all the Bladebreakers, he was the closest to me, but I never really realized how close.  
  
About twelve years back there was a breakthrough in technology: Kenny made Dizzi a body, but she was still able to function as a computer. He called her a 'Persocom', a humanoid computer who looked and acted just like any human. It was amazing. Everybody had a Persocom; even I had one. But my Persocom was special. I didn't use it for surfing the web or for a means of communication; I used mine for companionship.  
  
I never could have done it without Emily; I was too embarrassed to ask Kenny for help. At first she was skeptical since Persocoms weren't her area of study. She also seemed uneasy about what I was asking her to do, but then she finally agreed and we began research. Slowly, I was able to recreate the friend I had lost. We worked on the project for two years, and every minute was worth it. I had Rei back. The extent of the detail was amazing; Emily was able to program almost every little gesture and expression Rei would have made into the Persocom. And because the Persocom's long raven hair hid the oversized ears, it was nearly impossible to tell it wasn't actually Rei, but a computer double.  
  
There were a few differences, of course. The Persocom didn't have Rei's memories. All it knew was that Emily was its creator, and I its master. It lived to please me. Well, maybe live isn't the right word. More like, it existed for that purpose. When I first brought my Persocom home ten years ago, there was a huge moral fuss. People said I was greedy and sick, making a computer copy of a person who had died, but I didn't listen to them. How could they understand what I felt? I had lost someone who was the closest thing I had to a best friend before realizing how important they were to me. Tyson and Max called me up when they saw the story on television; I think they understood, but it still bothered them that I had remade Rei.  
  
That was the last time I talked to either of them.  
  
After a while no one really cared about my new Persocom, and life sunk into a routine. Everyday I'd go to work while my Persocom took care of the chores. I guess the moral talks had gotten to me, because instead of naming my Persocom Rei, I named it Neko. Neko was perfect -he took care of all the cleaning and shopping for me; I never had to lift a finger. Even though Neko couldn't eat, he always had my meals ready and waiting, and everything he did was always perfection, something I had never achieved as a blader. And it made me feel happy to come home everyday, met with the warm golden eyes that had once belonged to Rei. Neko was enthusiastic about everything and was always there to try and make me smile, often succeeding. And that was when I realized I had fallen in love with my Persocom.  
  
Neko looked just like Rei had when I last saw him, he had the body of the sixteen-year-old Chinese blader and many of the same characteristics. So it made me wonder; was I in love with Neko, or Rei? At the age of twenty-five, I really didn't want to be in love with either of them: Neko was a computer, and Rei had been dead for nine years. But I couldn't stop my feelings from growing every time Neko would greet me with a smile or an embrace. And another thing, no matter how quickly I aged, Neko always stayed the same. He always stood at Rei's short 5'5, his hair always hung to his ankles, and he never stopped acting like a teenager. Neko was a painful reminder of the boy I had never fully appreciated when he was alive, and I couldn't escape that guilty feeling that I could have acted better towards Rei.  
  
Often, my Persocom would ask me why I didn't use him like most owners used their Persocoms; why I didn't want to use his powerful, custom programmed software that Emily had worked so hard on. He was always willing to go online or call up one of my friends, but I declined the offers. I guess Neko felt I was lonely (he was the only one I ever really talked to) because some nights while I was watching the news, he'd curl up in my lap and ask me if I was okay. Then he'd look at me with those innocent eyes, so full of programmed concern, and make me ache for Rei; the real Rei, the Rei who always knew when something was bothering me, and wouldn't take any lame 'I'm fine' because he knew I wasn't. But I'd tell Neko I was fine, just tired, and he'd nod happily and cuddle against me while I stroked his hair in an absent manner.  
  
From being out in the real world, Neko understood that his role in my life was different than that of most Persocoms. One day, I came home to find him hooked up to my television, the connection cables coiled around him, surfing the Internet for images and information on Rei and myself. I'll never forget the hollow look in those amber pools as they drank up all the information, or the painful gaze Neko sent me when he realized who he was created after. Neko was hardly ever cheerful after that day; he seemed to be haunted by the pictures of the longhaired, golden-eyed boy whose image he'd been made in.  
  
As Persocoms became more frequent in society, more questions rose about the moral issues surrounding the machines. Seems I wasn't the only one who was emotionally attached to their computer. However, I was startled to find my situation brought into light again after all the years that had passed. It seemed everyone was talking about Neko and I. Not long after, Emily came to do a follow up on Neko. She performed some system checks on her technological creation, and made a few updates to Neko's outdated software. I had a feeling the others had sent her to check on me, but I didn't ask her about it. Soon she was gone, and it was just Neko and I again.  
  
Neko had been living with me for just over five years when I couldn't contain my confusion anymore. Rei always seemed to be filling my mind, and having Neko around wasn't helping any. So I called Neko into the room one night, pulled him to me, and kissed his ebony crown of hair. He felt so real in my arms, his smooth skin and soft hair was just like any human's, and for a moment, it was like Rei was with me. Neko never objected to anything I did, but he seemed to be further saddened when I grew even more depressed than before. I was beginning to see that the more I was around Neko, the harder it was for me to let go of Rei. And it wasn't just depressing for me; Neko was created to please me, but all he did was bring me more pain. So Neko tried any little thing to make me happy, his memory chip reminding him of all the times when just his smile would make me feel better, but none of it worked. We then fell into a bland lifestyle, one that continued on until around my twenty-eighth birthday, when something went wrong with Neko.  
  
At this point, Neko was now ten years old. It's amazing to think he lasted that long, since most domestic models were only guaranteed for up to five years at the time. But eventually Neko's circuits began to fry, and like any computer, he was dubbed 'broken'. When I couldn't fix Neko myself, I called Emily and told her the problem. She said there was nothing she could do anymore, and that I should be grateful Neko lasted as long as he had. I yelled at her and told her it wasn't the end, it couldn't be. But once again, I found myself losing Rei, and this time it was even more painful.  
  
The cold weather was what finally did Neko in. He had tried to shovel my walk when I was at work one day, and I came home to find he had burned out. Nearly twelve years after Rei had died, Neko quit working and I was left alone. The story was all over the television, and I couldn't get rid of the reporters. They asked me things like 'how does it feel to lose someone twice?' and 'will you replace the Persocom built to replace a human?' but I didn't answer any of their stupid questions. All the sorrow inside of me made me feel ashamed. I had thought that a Persocom could replace Rei, but Neko had never fulfilled that desire. Sure he was an adequate stand in, but he hadn't been Rei.  
  
After Neko left me, I got a call from Max. We talked for a bit, and the blond finally convinced me to visit him and Tyson. I liked seeing the other Bladebreakers again. We talked about the old days when we visited China, America, Europe and Russia, reminiscing about the time when we were world famous. Kenny stopped by with Dizzi, who played back videos of our matches. And I was glad when she accidentally loaded Rei's battle against Bryan, because it allowed me to see the White Tiger again. The others were silent as I watched the clip, taking in every detail of Rei's determined stance, the confident look in his eyes and the smirk with which he greeted the challenge. I had never felt prouder of the Chinese boy than at that moment, his ultimate moment in the spotlight, when he proved to the world how strong he really was.  
  
The reunion was good for me, and Kenny gave me a small Persocom shaped as Dranzer to use as a phone so we could keep in touch. Max promised to call me as often as he could, and I'm grateful for that. We still talk to this day, holding a reunion once a year. The two years after Neko broke were hard, and I had to learn to move on from not only Neko, but Rei as well. I still miss them both, but I realize that the memories are the most precious thing I have. Neko taught me a valuable lesson about life; in time, humans get over their losses and learn to live without their loved ones. No one, especially someone close, can be replaced; Neko was proof of that. As long as I remember both Rei and Neko, it will be like they never left my side. And one day, I know I'll see them both again.  
  
~Owari~  
  
-----------------------------------------  
  
A/N: Like Logout Denied, this fic had a flavoring of another anime. This time it was Chobits, an excellent Clamp manga, so be sure to check it out if you like stories with a sci-fi edge. So to end this off, I'd just like to say that I own neither Beyblade nor Chobits, and I hope you enjoyed this strange little fic of mine ^^ 


End file.
